Change
by Notreadytoletgo
Summary: Change can be good or bad...Sequel to Can't Let Go. Please R&R!:D D/L of course!
1. Not how it's supposed to be

**Hey all, first of, thanks for opening this up!If you read my story Can't Let Go, the first few chaps will make more sense, but not necassary..I don't think..Anyways, thanks to everyone who did make my first story possible and here's hoping I'll get the same great feedback for this one!:D**

**Thanks to Brinchen86 for beta'ing, my stories wouldn't be possible without her!**

**Enjoy.**

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It was the day after Danny had taken Lindsay's breath away in Central Park Zoo and she couldn't stop smiling. Luckily they both had a late shift that day so Lindsay was taken by surprise when she awoke to an empty space next to her where Danny usually slept.

She suddenly had a terrifying reminder of what happened the last time she woke up alone when she wasn't meant to. Her panic quickly faded when she glanced over to the pillow next to hers. A note lay where Danny's head normally would.

_Montana, _

_Sorry if I've freaked you out, you just looked so beautiful lying there; I didn't want to wake you. I've gone to buy breakfast; I'll be back before you know it_

_I love you future Mrs Messer,_

_D xxx_

Lindsay's smile grew as she reached the end of the note. Content in the knowledge that Danny would soon return, she fell back into a peaceful sleep.

Two hours later Lindsay woke again, she strained to hear any inclination that there was another person in the apartment. Any hint at all that Danny was home, but she found none. Once again feeling a now familiar mix of panic and angst, she picked up her phone and began to dial Danny's cell. Before she had a chance it began to ring in her hands. It was Stella.

Lindsay answered immediately, and was surprised to hear Stella stifling sobs on the other end, any hopes Lindsay had of Danny being at the lab were soon wiped away.

"Linds, it's Danny" Lindsay caught her breath as every possible scenario ran through her head, none of which were pleasant ones.

Stella continued "There was a mugging outside the bodega where Danny was, h-…" Lindsay cut her off.

"Where is he Stell? Tell me where he is." She demanded.

"He's at the hospital, Flack's on his way to get you, the rest of the team were called to the scene so we're already here." Stella replied.

No sooner had the phone dropped from Lindsay's hands did she hear a knock on her door. She ran to answer it and was practically halfway down the corridor when Flack called her name.

"Lindsay" You might wanna get dressed, you're wearing Danny's sweats..."

"Do you think I care?" she practically shouted, "My fiancée is in hospital, all I care about is getting to him as quickly as possible."

Flack nodded and followed her to the car.

Once inside the moving vehicle, Flack tried to keep the tone light hearted.

"Fiancée huh? So he finally did it?"

Lindsay gave a small smile and nodded "You knew?" she whispered.

"Yeah, he told me the day you and Stella went shopping. She was in on it too; did you know that both you and Danny picked out the same ring? Man, you guys were so meant to be."

Lindsay tried to smile before she felt her eyes prick with tears, and before she could stop herself she began to cry. Flack looked over at his friend the best he could whilst still keeping his eyes on the road. A little piece of his heart broke at the sight of his friend facing what he could only imagine was her worst nightmare. He pushed his foot down on the accelerator, determined to get to the hospital as soon as he could.

They had finally pulled into the hospital and Lindsay jumped out of the barely stationary car. Flack had to sprint to catch up with her and into the ICU where Danny was. She didn't stop running until she saw the team sitting on the horrible plastic chairs that could only belong in a hospital. She barely paused for breath before she bombarded everyone with questions.

"How did it happen? Where was he? Why did this happen to him? What's going on? Where is he now? Is he okay?"

Stella took a breath and began to explain what had happened "From what we've gathered from witness accounts, Danny was in the bodega when he saw a fight outside. Danny being Danny went out there to break it up. Anyway, he got too involved and one of the perps…." Stella's voice broke "They pulled a gun on him Linds."

Lindsay bit her lip to prevent herself from crying out loud, but it didn't stop the steady flow of tears that were falling from her eyes. She remembered seeing his piece on the kitchen table that morning. He was unsuspecting and completely vulnerable to any form of attack.

Mac decided now would be as good a time as any to tell her the details of Danny's injuries.

"They shot him in the chest Lindsay…he's in surgery, he arrived at the hospital in critical condition." He stood up and brought Lindsay into a hug, mainly to prevent her from collapsing to the ground.

Hawkes then went on to explain that the perp who drew the gun on Danny was currently in questioning and that Adam was processing the gun to confirm that he was the shooter. It was a sure thing that he would be serving at least 10 years.

Lindsay was still processing the information when Mac spoke.

"Lindsay…is that an engagement ring?" he stammered.

Caught off guard, Lindsay glanced down at her left hand. Last night had seemed like a lifetime ago,

"Danny and I got engaged last night." She gave a watery smile.

The team shared a short glance. This was fantastic news. But for another situation. They all wanted nothing else than saying how happy they were for the couple. But neither of them dared to speak it out.

Lindsay barely summoned enough energy to keep smiling when Mac stood up once again and enveloped her into yet another hug. When they broke apart Mac had tears in his eyes as he spoke.

"Danny will be there to see you walk down the aisle, he wouldn't miss it for the world..." he smiled.

Lindsay felt her lower lip tremble again as she tried to mirror his smile whilst blinking through the tears.

She was about to ask Mac if he would give her away when a nurse came bursting into the corridor from surgery.

Lindsay couldn't help but wonder if the blood on the nurse's surgical scrubs belonged to Danny as the nurse spoke.

"Detective Messer's heart stopped twice during the surgery, we were able to revive him, but his condition is still unstable, the next 24 hours are critical to his recovery. He'll be in the ICU until he is stable enough to move him into his own room upstairs. The bullet was successfully removed. You will be able to see him one at a time, I'll send someone out to let you know when he is ready for visitors, bear in mind that he won't wake up for a while. "

She handed Mac the plastic bag that the bullet was in for processing.

Lindsay slid down onto the plastic chair and sobbed into her hands. No, this was not how she imagined she would spend the first few hours of her engagement, not at all.

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**A/N: Thanks so much, I hope you liked it, now all you need to do to make my day is click that little purple button and review. Anything you have to say at all, even constructive critisism, it makes the story better for everyone!:)**

**Hands out cookies!**


	2. Trials,Tribulations and Tears

**A/N:Thank you so much to all the reviews, those of you who had reply URLs I did reply to, if you reviewed with no reply URL, let me thank you now so much, it's those little pieces of encouragement that will keep this story going!  
Thanks as always to Brinchen86 for the beta.  
I hope you enjoy this chapter!:D:D  
**

The second Danny was able to have visitors it was only natural for Lindsay to be the first in the room. So as soon as the nurse came out and alerted the team to Danny's stability, Lindsay practically sprinted into the room and took his hand in hers. The rest of the team took positions outside the room window and watched in silence. Lindsay sat for a while, watching the rise and fall of Danny's chest in a strangely comforting motion, as she waited for the nurse to finish updating his charts. Once the nurse had left Lindsay broke the silence.  
"Hey, it's me" she whispered. "Listen to me, okay, you need to wake up, do that for me please?"  
A single tear fell down her cheek, soon followed by another and then another.  
"Because the thing is "she continued "You're always here to look after me, and I need you now, more than ever. Come back to me, Danny, please come back."

Lindsay rested her head on hers and Danny's entwined hands and allowed herself to cry. She cried for the team, she cried for everything she'd ever lost but most of all she cried for Danny.

The team took their seats in the corridor in order to give Lindsay some much needed privacy with her fiancée. They sat in a silence that, although no one wanted to break, it wasn't exactly wanted. Each one of them had their head in their hands looking at the ground.  
Five minutes had passed when Macs phone rang, piercing into the silence. Everyone's heads shot up to look at the source of the incessant ringing. Mac took his phone from his pocket and answered.  
"Taylor"  
"Mac, it's Adam, after processing the gun I was able to confirm that it had been shot around the same time frame as the incident. I also lifted prints to confirm that the perp we have in custody was in fact the shooter."  
"Great job Adam, I have the bullet taken from Danny's wound tract, but it's unlikely we're going to need it. I'll head back over to the lab now and help you with the paperwork."  
"Uhuh... hey boss, how's he doing?"  
"Not great Adam, he's out of surgery but he hasn't woken up yet. I'll see you at the lab."

Mac hung up and turned to the CSI's who had returned their gazes back to the ground. He sighed as he cast his mind over the trials and tribulations that year had brought his "family" and he couldn't help but wish he could do more to help, that he could somehow take away any amount of pain. Little did he know that the three people he was sharing a corridor with were all thinking the exact same thing.

"Someone should take her home." Hawkes croaked, looking at his watch, it was 10pm; they'd been there since 11am, running only on the coffee from the machine round the corner.  
"You really think she's going to listen?" replied Stella.  
"No, but she's been in there since this morning, she hasn't come out for coffee or anything. She at least needs to eat something." Reasoned Hawkes.  
The three looked at each other silently preparing themselves for the state Lindsay would inevitably be in.  
"I'll go." Flack stood up and walked towards the room, he knocked before letting himself in. He looked over at the bed and saw what, in any other circumstance would have been heart-warming, but today it brought tears to his eyes. Lindsay was curled up in the chair brought from the corner of the room to reside as close to the edge of the bed as possible. Her ringed hand was grasping onto Danny's as if it was the most precious thing in the world. Which to Lindsay it probably was. Her eyes were red rimmed from crying and fixed on the heart monitor. Flack stood watching them for about five minutes before Lindsay spoke up.

"There's been no change." She whispered hoarsely, turning to look at Flack.  
"Linds, you need to get something to eat, you've been in here for eleven hours straight."  
"I'm not hungry." She replied, turning back to look at the monitor.  
"You can't just stay here Linds, come on, I'll take you to get a coffee, Stella and Hawkes are here in case he wakes up. You can't do anything for him right now."  
Lindsay looked back at Flack and after a moments deliberation she slowly nodded her head. Flack walked over to her and helped her out of the chair and into a hug. He led her out the room and motioned for Stella to go in.

"You must be exhausted" said Flack as he placed two coffees on the table in front of Lindsay.  
"So you got me two caffeine hits?" she replied.  
Flack gave a small smile "No, one's for me."  
Lindsay nodded and took a sip of the piping hot liquid. Flack observed the worried look that hadn't left Lindsay's face since he had picked her up that morning.  
"What if he doesn't wake up?" she caught him off guard.  
Flack suspected this was more a question she was asking herself rather than him, but he felt the need to reassure her.

"He'll wake up Linds; he's not going to give up that easy."  
Fresh tears were streaming down both friends faces as they finished their drinks in silence.

The doors opened back onto the ICU, just as Lindsay and Flack saw 2 nurses and a doctor scurry past in the direction of Danny's room.  
Lindsay saw them and a look of dread washed over both of her face as she took off after the doctor. She arrived at the doorway to Danny's room and choked on the sobs that couldn't escape her mouth quickly enough.

Four friends watched in horror as the sound of a flat line echoed through the room.

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**Reviews make my day, I hope you liked it...more coming soon.**

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	3. Bittersweet Love

**Okay, this is a slightly longer chapter than most ones I do, so please read it and pelase be patient!:)  
Thanks as always to Brinchen86 for betaing!:D  
Enjoy and don';t forget to review!:D**

**Disclaimer:Own nothing, totally forgot to say that before!:P**

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Lindsay was unable to watch as the doctor tried to shock Danny's heart back into beating, so instead she buried her tear drenched face into Flack's chest, who had his arms protectively around her, the way an elder brother might for a younger sister. Both Stella and Sheldon stared, unblinking at the scene unfolding in front of them.  
They saw a nurse push some sort of drug into his morphine drip, probably more morphine. The other nurse was stood behind the doctor who was currently on his second attempt with the electrical paddles. Stella broke into muffled sobs; Hawkes took this as his cue to give her a much needed hug.  
Suddenly there was silence from the room where Danny lay. Each CSI's breath was caught in their throats until the heart monitor broke into a rhythmical beep that filled the room.  
One by one, each person slowly lifted their heads in the direction of the window, as if moving too quickly might break the peace the room was currently in.

The doctor turned to walk out the room, leaving the nurses to clean up and rewrite Danny's charts. He looked at the four friends, each staring at them with questions in their eyes, waiting for an answer.  
"He's stable now, it could have been a lot worse, in this case it was just a minor complication that caused the heart to stop, however everything is better now, and his prognosis is very good, it's a lot more likely he will wake up than it was yesterday. That much I can tell you."  
Everyone let out the breath they had been holding and sobbed with relief.  
"I'll go call Mac at the lab" Sheldon said as he walked towards a payphone.  
Lindsay didn't wait for anyone to give her permission, she walked slowly back into the room and took up her position in the chair by Danny's bed, and once again placed his hand in hers.

Stella and Flack were sitting alone in the corridor. Stella was holding her knees to her chest as she rested her head on Flacks shoulder. Flack looked down on her and saw that her eyes were shut and she was breathing steadily. She was asleep.  
"Stell, I've wanted to say this for a while now, but the time never felt right. And honestly I was afraid that you might not feel the same. I do plan on telling you this when you're awake as well but, I guess I wanted to hear myself say it first. What I'm trying to say is, I guess I love you."  
Flack heard Stella take a sharp intake of breath.  
"I love you too Flack, I wanted to tell you yesterday but then, this happened and everything just seemed too chaotic. But when I see Lindsay and how her heart is breaking over Danny, I don't want to waste time playing games anymore."  
"I thought you were asleep!" Flack scolded.  
"I know." Stella smiled "But I'm glad I wasn't, I didn't want to miss this."  
The couple looked at each other for a moment or two until the space between them closed and their lips met.  
Once they had broken apart Stella took hold of Flacks hand and held it as she rested her head back on his shoulder and fell into a bittersweet sleep.  
Flack kissed her head and in turn closed his eyes.

Hawkes rounded the corner back into the corridor. He smiled at the sleeping couple to his left. He then turned to look through the window and felt his eyes prick at the sight of Lindsay, who had moved from the chair to next to Danny on the bed. He was in the presence of two couples so much in love, all connected by a grasped hand. They needed each other, and Hawkes couldn't help but feel warmed by this fact. He took a seat opposite Flack and Stella and promptly fell asleep.

The next morning Lindsay woke up to the sound of a nurse checking on Danny. The nurse smiled at her.  
"We're not meant to let you on the patient's bed," upon seeing the look of worry on Lindsay's face she continued "But in your case, I haven't seen anything." And with that she left the room.  
Lindsay turned so that she could face Danny on the pillow. She didn't say anything; she merely looked at his face, willing his eyes to open.

Throughout the rest of the next few days, the whole team took it in turns to go home, to the lab and the hospital. The only person who didn't move from where they were was Lindsay. She wouldn't even leave Danny's room for a coffee in the fear that when she returned he would have worsened. So instead, whoever was at the hospital would join her in the room for some company.  
Sometimes Lindsay would sit in the chair and talk to everyone who was there, and sometimes she would lie down by Danny's side in silence.  
It was one of the silent days; Mac was sitting outside the room with Flack.  
"I don't know if I ever told you this, but I want to thank you for everything you did for me, that day of the explosion." Stated Flack.  
Mac was taken aback "It's okay; I couldn't have had you dying on me now could I?"  
Flack smiled "I guess then Gerrard would really hate you."  
Both laughed at this quietly.  
"I'm going to go in and check on her." Flack stood up.

"Linds?" he whispered as he walked in the room.  
"Hey Flack" Lindsay replied.  
"How're you doing?"  
"I've been better"  
"How is he?"  
"The same." The conversation ended there and Flack took a seat on the other side of the room.  
That was the routine every "silent day" Lindsay had, except today, something happened to make it every different.

Lindsay was once again curled up on Danny's bed; Flack was almost certain she hadn't let go of Danny's hand since she walked in there after his heart stopped.  
Out of nowhere a mummer came from where Danny was.  
Flack shot up out of his chair and rushed out the room to tell Mac.  
"Danny, baby? Are you awake?" Lindsay stammered.  
Very slowly Danny opened his eyes until he was squinting at his fiancées face.  
"Lindsay?" he croaked.  
Lindsay burst into a fresh bout of tears, and for the first time in a long time they were tears of joy.  
"Shh, shh, baby, don't cry, I'm okay." Danny brought his free hand over to stroke Lindsay's face.  
Struggling through the tears Lindsay managed to speak "I missed you."  
Danny smiled as best he could. "I missed you too Linds."  
Just then Flack came rushing back into the room, closely followed by Mac and a doctor.

"It's nice of you to join us Detective." Said the doctor cheerfully.  
Danny nodded in reply.  


The doctor checked Danny's vitals, drips and wrote some things on his chart and explained to Danny what had happened.  
"You were shot a week ago, you had some pretty major surgery on admittance to the ICU, but other than a few minor complications, you were doing great, it was just a matter of you deciding when to join us." He smiled "Do you have any questions?"  
Danny shook his head.  
"Okay then I'll leave you to reacquaint yourself to your friends, who by the way have not left this hospital since you got in. You're a blessed man."  
"I know" rasped Danny.  
The doctor left just as Mac spoke up.  
"Good to see you back in the land of the living Danny."  
"Yeah mate it's good to see ya" agreed Flack. "The others are at the lab, but they're gonna come and see you as soon as they solve this case they got."  
"Thank You." Was all that Danny could say in response.

After catching Danny up to speed with all the latest news around the lab, Don and Mac left Lindsay alone with her fiancée.

"So, what did the doctor mean by minor complications?" Danny asked.  
"Oh it was nothing." Lindsay shrugged. "Your heart just stopped a couple of times, it was no big deal."  
"Is that right? So you weren't worried about me at all then?"  
"You see this?" Lindsay held up hers and Danny's still entwined hands.  
Danny nodded.  
"I haven't let go of this since that minor complication."  
Danny looked at her questioningly, upon seeing she was serious, Danny's eyes filled with tears.  
"I'm so sorry Lindsay, I didn't want you hurting."  
"It's okay, you're okay now, everything's okay." Lindsay responded as a few tears trailed down her cheeks. She leant down and placed a kiss on Danny's lips.  
"I missed you so much Linds." Danny looked at Lindsay, who he saw was shivering "Come on, it's freezing in here, get under the blanket."  
Lindsay nodded "If you stop calling me that."  
"Stop calling you wha..." Danny stopped, understanding what she meant; he gave out a small chuckle "Get in here Montana!"  
Lindsay smiled a smile that warmed Danny's heart. Lindsay snuggled up against Danny's chest as Danny brought the blanket up around them both.  
"I love you cowboy"  
"I love you Montana"

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**Wow, who totally didn't see that coming?:POkay so for those of you who read my last fic, I hope you got the reference to early in my last story, if not, then I guess I didn't make it clear!:PUpdate in process of being written!:)  
So come on make my day and review!**


	4. The End

I would first of all like to say, sorry.  
I'm sorry for anyone who received and email update saying that I had a new chapter, for any hopes that I got up, I am well and truly sorry, not that I am deluded enough to think there are many of you waiting with baited breath for another instalment.  
All the same I feel like I should inform you that I am no longer going to be writing this story.  
There are many reasons for this, personal mostly and the fact that I can't seem to be inspired by anything on the show.  
I want to thank everyone who read and reviewed my first story Can't Let Go that was, and still is my baby; my first attempt at writing for someone else's viewing pleasure. All the reviews I received on that story I have saved in my email inbox, ready for me to look at whenever I want.  
Thank you for any of you who read my poems, writing is so important to me, and it means so much to have someone liking what brings a smile to my face.  
Thank you for the reviews on this story, thank you to anyone who favourite it or added it to your updates list, I can't ever be more thankful for that, which makes doing this even more difficult.  
Thank you especially to Brinchen86, my beta, she inspired me to write for the first time, and she encouraged and helped my stories along, without her, I'd still be doodling love hearts in my notebooks rather than filling them with words. Thank you Brina, from the bottom of my heart. You're an amazing writer and I love your stories, to anyone who hasn't read them, you should.  
I'm not sure she'll see this but thank you to BlkRse, thank you for threatening to review every chapter of my stories just to get me to update. You know how much you mean to me lovely, thank you for caring about my writing. Keep updating your story though, yes?  
Finally I want all of you reading this to do with my story what you will. You can keep the first three chapters and write the ending you want to write. You can scrap the chapters and take the idea if you want. Credit is not compulsory but it is appreciated. This story is yours readers, I'm sorry I haven't finished it, but it is now yours turn it into the story you want it to be, don't be afraid of doing anything to it.  
If any of you are aspiring writers, good luck. Writing is one of the most amazing things in this world and if you're lucky enough to enjoy it, keep at it, you're doing a great job.  
If you are just a reader, who saw this on the front page of the CSI:NY fan fiction, in the hope of finding a good story, I'm sorry this wasn't what you were looking for. But keep going, there are many fantastic writers on this website, you're going to find something you like!  
This is my closure from my stories on the CSI: NY fan fiction. Who knows? I might return at some point in the future, but not right now.  
This is me saying goodbye to my story, I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.  
Thank you, and once again, I'm sorry.


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